Huntsville gazette., 1887-05-21
SOME PERSIAN PRINCES.
Their Moral Development Exhibiting Not
Very Charming Type.

Tnelr MORAL Development Exhibiting NOT
Very Charming Type.
Most of the Kajar Princes are av-
aricious, and generosity, that great
virtue of the East, is almost extinct
with them, writes Teheran CORE
spondent. A great and very rich
Prince. the Mahomet-ed-dowleh, was
sitting at the window of his room, look
ing on while some malefactors were
receiving the bastinado. A man was
just being told to lie down and put his
feet into the felik-the stick with the
moose which holds up the patients feet
when he whispered something to the
head ferrash, the principal bastinado
operator. The Prince asked to know
what the man had been whispering,
and was told that he had promised to
give two tomans to the operators on
the condition that the beating was
done gently. Said the Prince: "Give
me four tomans and Twill let you off
altogether He got the four tomans
(thirty-two shillings) and the man
went off free, to the great disgust of
the operators. The Hismet-ed-Dowleh
once thought himself obliged to give
present to the Russian Consul-Gen-
eral at Tauris, but, as generosity was
not his forte, he wished to do it as
cheaply as possible, and sent a good
looking, but unsound horse. The Con-
sui, when the horse arrived. did not
take long to find out that the animal
was dreadful screw, and worth hardly
eight pounds. Now the Prince had
told him he would send him horse
worth forty pounds. The Consul, with
many compliments, then pointed out
that the horse had been intended as a
souvenir, as he was going to Russia;
but that a horse was most unsuitable
souvenir, being liable to die, and he
would be obliged if the Prince would
give him the value of the horse in
money, so that he might buy himself
less pefishable souvenir. The Prince
sent forty pounds, but swore he would
not give any more presents to Eu-
ropeans. Ihaye seen one of the Shah's
cousins riding with crowd of follow
ers through field, destroying, per-
haps, twenty shillings' worth of vege-
tables and giving the poor, distracted
owner three small silver pieces, worth
threepenee. I have seen another
Prince give man who had risked his
life for him, and got severely wounded
in consequence, the sum of seven
pence. t%.t#
The Shah and the Princes, when they
wish to confer special mark of favor,
give mantle or coat or hat-any arti-
Gle of dress which they have had in
use. Prince Sheikh-el-Mulookw was once
in bad odor at court, and the inhabit-
ants of his little government knowing
that did not treat him with due respect.
Now, if he could prove that the Shah
looked upon him with favor, the people
would become submissive; and how bet
ter to prove it than by getting a robe
of honor from the Shah? He therefore
wrote to his daughter, who was one of
the Shah's wives, and asked her to get
what was wanted. Some weeks after
that the khalat-the Persian term for
robe of honor-arrived. It was night
cap. The Prince rode out four or five
miles from town, and there, at the
khalat-pusham-the place where the
khalats are put on; every provincial
capital has a place destined for
this purpose-solemnly put the
nightcap on his head, and
then rode into town, cheered and
salaamed by the populace. Afterward
the true story, how the nightcap had
been obtained, came out. Many times
had the Princes daughter asked the
Shah for a khalat for her father, and
every time it had been refused. Finally
she became very importunate, and the
irrascible Shah--I am not speaking of
the present one-irst annoyed, and
then in a towering rage, tore his cap
off his head and threw it at her with an
oath. She thanked him and left the
room with it. Any mark of favor from
high parsonage, any present, is called
wrongly, perhaps-a khalat. A dis
tinguished stranger to Persia was once
startled by all his servants running in
and telling him that the Prince Nusret-
ed-dowleh had sent him khalat. The
Princes servants, four or five Of them,
soon after appeared, one Of them carry
ing a huge copper tray, mysteriously
covered up with gold-befringed cash
mere shawl, worth at least thirty
pounds. The stranger got up and ex-
pressed his thanks, made many COM
pliments; the tray vast then uncovered,
and there was the khalat-two lettuces.
l think the stranger rewarded the
Princes servants right royalty, and
had an expensive salad that evening
for dinner. / still occasionally see an
old gentleman, who, whenever he pulls
his spectacles out of their case, a thing
made Of piece of shawl, never fails to
say with pride: "This spectacle case
came to me from the Shah.'' One Of
his wife's relations in the royal harem